Chicago Fire: City of Heroes

Chapter Twenty-Two:

"Boy, sure worked up a sweat going up and down them stadium stairs," Capp jokes, bringing the attention of Stella, Otis, and Alex to him. "Lex, time to break in the dryer."

Alex claps and shoots to her feet in an instant. She heads in the direction of Ambulance 61, moving past it to roll out a tall piece of equipment toward the empty slot in the bay.

"Ready?" Alex questions Capp, who nods in response, "One, two, three."

The duo pulls off the tarp, unveiling four PVC pipes mounted on a sheet of plywood.

Jason Kannell— who was recently transferred to Squad 3, per Matt's request— whistles, "Cool."

"It's pretty basic, actually. When plugged in, the fan blows warm air to these holes," Alex explains, gesturing to the many holes drilled into the pipes. "Forces air up through the pipes, and..."

Capp plugs the cord into the wall, which turns on the fan.

"No more sweaty jackets," Tony finishes with a beaming smile.

As he takes off his jacket, Jason realizes that there are only four pipes rather than five.

Alex frowns, rubbing her chin, "Ah, damn. I'm sorry. There were only four of them when they came to me with the idea. The good news is that I made sure to get a bigger sheet of plywood, so if need be, we can add."

Jason waves her off, "Nah, it's cool."

Alex falls silent, already deciding to add another stand for Jason.

"Alex, Chief's looking for you," Connie proclaims, disrupting to awkward silence.

"Again? That's what? Twice in two weeks?" Stella asks, peering up from checking her air-pack.

Alex shrugs, backing away while still facing the firefighter, "Still feels like I'm going to the principal's office."

The brunette spins her heels, opening the doors to the common room. As she approaches the private office, the door is closed, and she makes out Kelly, Matt, and Wallace standing about, seemingly discussing something. She patiently waits outside until the door opens, and the two lieutenants leave. Alex sends a single nod as a greeting before knocking on the door.

Wallace waves the brunette in, "Alex, come on in."

"Respectfully, Chief, it feels like I'm going to the principal's office whenever Connie comes to get me," Alex jokes, ending with a chuckle.

"Yeah, I know it does, but you're not in any kind of trouble," Wallace asserts, closing the door behind Alex. "I got a call from headquarters, informing me that you just recently reached your Squad certification."

Alex bites her lip, "Yes. I've had it for a couple of weeks."

"Well, there is an issue. The department's allowing for a five-man Squad, and even then, Kannell's spot might not be permanent."

"I understand, Chief. I just wanted to challenge myself, and plus, I think it may be beneficial to have someone certified on Truck if a Squad is not available."

"That's a good idea. Does anyone know?"

"Other than you and headquarters?" Alex clarifies, "No. Not even Severide. With everything going on with Anna... I didn't want to bring it up. It felt... wrong, you know?"

"Well, it's your call if you want to tell him, but I think he could use some good news."

"Copy that, Chief. Is there anything else?"

Wallace shakes his head, "You're free to go."

Alex smiles, heading out of the office.

"Ambulance 61. Well-being check. 2252 West 12th Street."